NINE alliances formed between Irish and US companies under the North American Partnership Programme and additional prospects in the pipeline are expected to lead to more than 200 new jobs in Ireland. The NAPP also aims to stimulate a significant 50 per cent growth in the companies involved beyond its own life of two years.
The North American Partnership Programme (NAPP) is a two year initiative, designed by the International Fund for Ireland and Forbairt. It was devised to promote the establishment of profitable and long term strategic alliances between companies in the border regions of the Republic and companies located in North America.
This new and imaginative programme grew from discussions between the International Fund for Ireland (IFI) and Forbairt. The result was NAPP which was launched in April 1995 by Minister for Enterprise and Employment, Mr Richard Bruton, IFI Chairman, Mr William McCarter, and Ms Jean Kennedy Smith, the US Ambassador to Ireland.
Currently, 15 companies are participating in the programme. At least three more are expected to take part before the programme ends in June. Companies were selected because of their strong technological capabilities and their potential to form beneficial partnerships with companies in the US.
US consultants, Pan Atlantic of Portland, Maine, were selected to identify, evaluate and develop contacts with potential compatible US and Canadian based partners.
As a result of on going assistance provided by Forbairt and Pan Atlantic, six Irish companies have, to date, formed a total of nine formal strategic alliance business partnerships with American companies.
Nick Mernagh of Forbairt's International Services Division firmly believes that these alliances have a strong value. "These joint partnerships between Ireland and the United States will significantly increase sales and profits for Irish companies which, in turn, will generate much growth in employment," said Mr Mernagh.
The NAPP Programme was endorsed at the White House conference on trade and investment in bay 1995. This conference was attended by the board of the fund as part of their wider work of bringing about economic and social advance, and also 15 of the NAPP participants. The late US Secretary for Commerce, Mr Ron Brown, played an important role in ensuring the success of this conference.
A similar conference is planned for Philadelphia in October. It will focus on the continued development of partnerships between industry in Northern Ireland and the US.
NAPP is just one of the many programmes promoted by the International Fund for Ireland. The fund has spent an average of some £30 million a year assisting over 3,200 individual projects, since it was established in 1986. These projects cover most areas of economic and community life and demonstrate the fund's success in meeting its twin aims of stimulating economic regeneration and community reconciliation.
Two other fund initiatives, which centre on the development of 1/5 and Irish trade, are also in existence AMBIT and RADIUS.
AMBIT (the American Business Internship Training programme) is a programme under which business people from Ireland spend some time with a related business in the US.
The aim is gain experience and possibly to initiate a direct business relationship. This initiative has been modelled on a successful US programme designed to assist the Russian economy in its move to an open market situation.
RADIUS, (Research and Development between Ireland and the United States), is designed to bring Irish and American companies together to develop market led and technology based joint ventures in product and process development.
